Eir
SOURCES
Poetic Edda
(Svipdag said:)
"Tell me, Fjolsvith, For fain I would know;
answer thou as I ask:
what the mountain is hight which the maided doth
dwell on, aloft and alone?"
(Fjolsvith said:)
"Tis Lyfja Mount hight, and long has it been
for the sick and the halt a help:"
for hale grows wholly, though hopeless she seems
the woman who wins its height."
(Svipdag said:)
"Tell me, Fjolsvith, For fain I would know;
answer thou as I ask:
what the maids are hight before Mengloth's knees
that sit in sisterly wise?"
(Fjolsvith said:)
"Hlif one is hight, Hlifthrasa another,
a third, Thjothvara;
eke Bjort and Bleik, Blith and Frith,
Eir and Aurbortha."
(Svipdag said:)
"Tell me, Fjolsvith, For fain I would know;
answer thou as I ask:
do they help award to their worshippers
if need of help the have?"
(Fjolsvith said:)
"Ay, they help award to their worshippers,
in hallowed stead if they stand;
there is never a need that neareth a man,
but they lend a helping hand."
Svipdagasmal 36 – 40. Hollander translation
Prose Edda
“Third is Eir. She is an extremely good physician.” (Gilfaginning)
Eir is also listed amongst the Valkyries in Skaldskaparmal.
A valuable resource for those wanting to know more about Eir is Chapter 13 in Our Troth. Some of the applicable section regarding Eir is reproduced below.
Eir (also Iær, Aer) is mentioned once by Snorri and appears once in Svipdagsmál. Snorri tells us that she is “the best of healers”; in Svipdagsmál, she is one of the maidens on a mountain called “Lyfja” (”to heal through magic” – de Vries,Wörterbuch, p. 369 ), of which it is said that it “has long been a pleasure for the sick and wounded; every woman will become whole if she climbs it, though she has a grievous illness”. The other women also have names suggesting works of weal, such as “Hlíf” (”Protection”), “Blíð” (”Blithe”), and Fríð (”beautiful, peaceful”) and it is said of them that they offer help to those who sacrifice to them. According to de Vries (Wörterbuch, p. 97), Eir’s name is originally derived from words meaning “honour” or “worship” (related to modern German Ehre); it is also seen as the Old Norse noun eir, “graciousness – mildness – help”. Related to it is the verb eira, “to care for; to help or please”. There is also a word eir meaning “copper”; though this word is not etymologically related to the goddess-name, the healing might of copper rings and bracelets has long been known in folk-medicine, so that this metal might well be thought of as particularly hers. More and more folk are becoming interested in Eir, and surely her healing might is much needed in the world today. Eir is clearly the particular patron of all those who work with any form of health-care or healing, but anyone who needs healing should call on her. KveldúlfR Gundarsson’s personal opinion is that Eir is likely to be a goddess who prefers the gentler and slower “alternative” methods of healing, such as aromatherapy, herbalism, and massage, together with emotional counselling and balancing; that her way of healing only uses the more drastic medical means such as surgery and antibiotic treatments in acute cases when the condition is too dangerous or extreme for the patient to heal safely without intervention, and even then, the greatest care is given to such things as nutrition and the patient’s spiritual and emotional state. Gefjon mentions that Eir is by no means a foe of technology when it is rightly applied – all healing tools belong to her – but her focus is on prevention more than cure, care and tending to encourage natural healing rather than unnecessary drastic intervention (as opposed to the necessary sort, of which she is also the patron). As much of the healing lore of our forebears was magical, we may well guess that Eir is a patroness of such magic – that her charms work on the soul and mind as well as the body, to bring about truly holistic healing. As a goddess who is both a spiritual and a physical healer, Eir is especially good to call on for those who need help in dealing with addictions. Eir must also have been thought of as something of a shaman, since the Anglo-Saxon charm spells show us that many sicknesses were considered to be the workings of alfs, dwarves, witches, or even the Ases (Storms, Anglo-Saxon Magic); in fact, the word “elf-shot” is known in all the Germanic languages, and Hexenschuss, “witch-shot”, is still used in rural Bavaria to describe serious pains in the bones and joints. The healer was one who knew not only the plants to help with such a sickness, but the way to magically prepare them and apply them so as to drive out the evil wights or the “shots” they had left in the patient’s body – and who was able to deal with health-threatening wights in the soul-world as well as working in the Middle-Garth.
Our Troth, Chapter 13
OUR THOUGHTS
During our blot to Eir, we performed a guided meditation, and Jon used the image of Berkano and the birch tree as he led the meditation. We later came upon the above passage in Our Troth, and it was reassuring to see that others linked Eir with Berkano and the birch.
Vingolf members have frequently called upon Eir, and offered her many a libation, and she has always been reliable and generous with her gifts. The passage from Svipdagasmal suggests that some kind of sacrifice was usually made to the goddesses on Lyfja Mount (The Mountain of Healing) for health; indeed, the mere climbing of the mountain would seem to a sacrifice of sorts in itself. This, combined with Eir’s less than loquacious nature (as mentioned in Our Troth, as well as experienced by Catheryn Burke, a Vingolf member who is a devotee of Eir), suggests that getting a “helping hand” (as the Eddic Poet calls it) from Eir might be difficult. It has been our experience, however, that the effort put forth and the intention are more important than the gift itself. Though mostly silent, Eir has made her presence (through visions and feelings) known quite manifest to Catheryn, especially during rituals dedicated to her. Eir also has an impeccable “bedside manner”, and freely offers emotional counsel and support when healing, for whatever reason, is not possible for the person praying to Eir (or the individual he/she may be praying on behalf of). When emotional healing is in order, Eir does not magically make everything better, like some wonder drug, but helps the individual upon a path that leads to healing (change of lifestyle, etc). Like the worshippers of old climbing Lyfja Mount, one must make an effort to work for healing, rather than sit back and expect the goddess to effect a change without aid from the patient.